Hi there! I am Jakob, a behavioural ecologist currently working as a research technician in the ABAC lab. I recently completed my PhD at the University of Groningen, the Netherlands, having studied the origins and ecological consequences of individual differences in behaviour using three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus).

Over the past years I have studied fishes in all kinds of places, from Germany, to Brazil, to the Netherlands, to Panama, to Trinidad and now here in Spain. I strongly believe that you cannot make sense of animals’ behaviour without considering their ecology and life-history and followingly, whenever possible, try to observe animals in their natural habitats. Due to the aquatic environment, observing fish in the wild if often difficult. During my PhD, I thus developed experimental mesocosms to track large numbers of fish automatically in semi-natural environments for long periods of time.

Here at CEAB I am excited to combine field observations in spectacular environments with sophisticated experiments in the lab, to better understand how fish cope with fluctuating water levels.